Page 29 of The Hero
Something fell onto the floor right above their heads, making him jump and waking Marlowe.
She stiffened in his arms, and Bob hurried to reassure her. In a toneless whisper—because if he could hear the people above them, they could surely hear him as well—he said, “It’s okay, Punky. We’re safe.”
She nodded against him, but every muscle in her body was tense. He could practically hear her thinking. She was probably plotting how she could give herself up to save him. When she’d suggested that earlier this morning, dread nearly overwhelmed him. There was no way he’d allow her to do such a thing. He’d die first.
The only other people he’d ever considered giving up his life for were his teammates. But he wasn’t the least bit surprised that Marlowe was now at the very top of that short list. His feelings for the woman were getting deeper by the day.
It wasn’t even hard to admit to himself. Especially after learning more about her before they’d fallen asleep. He liked everything he knew so far. And she was now his wife. Their marriage may or may not be legal back home, but he didn’t care.
Marlowe’s entire body trembled as the voices grew louder, and her fear cut through Bob like a knife. He hated that she was scared, but there was nothing he could do at the moment other than hold her tight.
He couldn’t understand what was being said above them, but he did hear Marlowe’s name more than once. Whoever was up there with their host was definitely looking for her. Bob prayed the woman wouldn’t give them up.
He heard more words, then footsteps receding.
Ten minutes later, the footsteps were back—then the trapdoor above them was wrenched open.
Bob moved instinctively, shoving Marlowe against the wall and pulling out the knife he kept in a sheath at his waistband, all in the same motion.
But the only person waiting for them was the elderly woman. She frantically gestured for them to get out of the hole. She looked anxious and kept glancing over her shoulder.
“Go!” she said urgently. “Go now!”
Praying she wasn’t double-crossing them, that the money Willis was paying her was more than she’d get for turning them in to the authorities, Bob stood and held out his hand for Marlowe.
“What’s going on?” she asked as she swayed on her feet.
Bob steadied her and climbed out of the hole. Not giving her a chance to climb out on her own, he grasped her waist and lifted her up and out. “We’re leaving,” he said tensely.
“Are they waiting for us outside?” she asked.
“I don’t know. But I’m thinking not.” Bob had no ideawhatto think, but he wasn’t going to heap any more worry onto Marlowe’s shoulders. He kept a tight hold on her hand as he followed the woman out of the office, toward the back of the house. She went straight to a covered window, peering around a tiny sliver in the curtain before turning to them and pointing to the door.
He shouldn’t have been surprised when Marlowe stepped toward the woman and gave her a long, hard hug, but he still was.
“Thank you,” she told the woman.
She pulled back and stared at Marlowe for a moment, then held up a finger, asking them to wait.
Anxious to be on his way, Bob had to use all his self-control not to rush Marlowe out the door. But the woman was back in less than thirty seconds, holding a piece of paper. She handed it to Marlowe with a small smile.
Looking over her shoulder, Bob saw the document was written in Thai, but it had both their names—their real names—in the center of the form. The woman held out a pen to Bob. Nodding at it, then at the form. She pointed to a line at the bottom.
“I think it’s our wedding certificate,” Marlowe whispered. “She wants us to sign it.”
Bob didn’t hesitate. He took the pen and gently removed the paper from Marlowe’s hand. He held it up against the door and signed his name on the line the woman had pointed to. Then he passed the pento Marlowe and held her gaze for a heart-stopping moment. Praying she’d follow his lead.
He needed her name on that paper. It made what they’d done legal. At least in this country. And knowing he and Marlowe were officially tied together in at least one country in the world made the anxiety inside him about the future settle a bit.
Marlowe took the pen from him and copied his motions, adding her signature to the line below his own. “Kendric and Marlowe Evans,” she whispered, reading their names that had been printed at the bottom of the form.
The woman said something else and smiled at them, before frowning once again at a noise toward the front of the house.
“It’s time to go,” Bob said, taking the paper, folding it up, and stuffing it into his pocket. He wished he could get it framed. Wished he didn’t have to put even one crease in the document. But their time here was up. They needed to get out. Now.
Without complaint, Marlowe nodded and turned to the door. Bob took five seconds to bow over their host’s hand and kiss it before nodding at her and opening the door.
Looking around, he saw it was once again dark, which was a huge relief. The scooter that had faithfully brought them this far was waiting. Praying it had been filled with gas, as it had at all their other stops, Bob climbed on, watching as Marlowe quickly donned the blonde wig once more. He’d forgotten about it until now, and he was more than thankful she hadn’t.
